Eagle Café Presents 2nd Benefit Concert for The Station Foundation
Story by Heidi Baumstark
On June 3, hundreds gathered, decked in cowboy boots and hats, at a country music benefit concert for The Station Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting our U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF) and their families. This was Eagle Café’s second benefit concert to raise funds for The Station Foundation (TSF), which provides in-person and virtual programs for SOF service members returning home from active duty, those transitioning into civilian life, and Gold Star communities, which are children of fallen warriors. The event was hosted by Barb Roux, Gail Dady, and the planning committee at Dave and Barb Roux’s 360-acre St. Bride Farm in Upperville.
The event included a car show by Callaway Classics, horse demonstrations, a silent auction, food by Mission Barbeque, and beer by Lost Barrel Brewing. The concert featured country music CMA superstar duo Thompson Square with rising CMA performer Ben Gallaher.
TSF was founded in 2011 by Kevin Stacy, a decorated combat leader with 12 worldwide deployments serving as a pilot in the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment. He and his wife, Shannon, felt the pressures placed on families within this community. In 2012, he transitioned from the military to focus on life beyond war and established TSF.
From the concert stage, Stacy said, “We’re a small organization that started 12 years ago. It’s all about people healing each other. It’s a commitment of truly caring. This evening celebrates the people and the programs that got us here. Last year at the inaugural benefit concert, we raised over $1.2 million and really honored our community. And tonight’s concert is about two bad-ass women — Barb and Gail — who came together to organize this. Everyone needs a Barb and Gail in their lives.”
The audience also heard from Gold Star member Jake, a senior at Texas A&M whose father was killed in Iraq in 2006. “The Station has created this sense of community that’s hard to describe; I stand here the man I am today because of The Station,” Jake said. “What makes The Station different is the passion and support they offer. They hold me accountable, and say the hard things, too.”
The Station’s core programs include The Homecoming Project (for active and retired SOF families at their Bozeman, Montana, facility), The Legacy Project (for Gold Star children), and The Interwoven Outreach Project (outreach program that extends to the SOF community in their own hometown). Spouses of SOF soldiers experience unique stresses and TSF addresses those needs like none other.
SOF patriots and their families have served; now it’s our turn to support them. To conclude the concert, Dave Roux added, “No one exemplifies giving more than our Special Operations Forces. See you back here next year: June 1, 2024!”
For more information and donation opportunities, visit thestationfoundation.org. ML
Posted on: June 6, 2023